Echoes of Amazon as Apple reportedly pursues standalone Siri device

It could also have built-in facial recognition technology to see who's home.

Apple may be planning to introduce Siri to a new home, one that doesn't live in your pocket or on your wrist. A Bloombergreport suggests that Apple may be developing a smart home device akin to Amazon's Echo that uses Siri to control other devices around the home, including smart lights and locks. Individuals "familiar with the matter" claim that the project has already gone through research and development, and it has now entered the prototype testing phase.

According to the report, Apple will try to set its product apart from Echo and Google's new Home device by incorporating "more advanced" microphones and speakers as well as facial recognition sensors that could help the device identify who is in the room. Apple has acquired the startups Faceshift and Emotient over the past couple years, both of which have experience in facial-recognition technology.

Since the device is assumed to be controlled by Siri, it could potentially be used for many existing Siri commands; for example, you might be able to ask the device to read your e-mail, stream Apple Music tracks, or send a text message. Apple reportedly first tried to integrate Siri into the Apple TV, which would have let users speak commands to the set-top box. However, project was never completed, and Apple instead decided to integrate voice-commands into the TV's controller.

Further Reading

But Apple has set its sights on the smart home space, evident by its release of HomeKit in 2014 and the refining of the Home app in iOS 10. Third-party manufacturers use HomeKit to incorporate Siri voice controls into their devices, allowing users to control all HomeKit-compatible devices with their voice. However, HomeKit requires companies to build new hardware that complies with Apple's MFi licensing program, so many manufacturers are still working on HomeKit-enabled versions of their existing products. If Apple does develop an Echo-like device, it could potentially be a hub for all HomeKit devices in a household.

Infiltrating the smart home sphere is just another way to encourage people to use Siri as much as possible. Bloomberg suggests Apple wants users to be able to control all of their devices (iPhones, iPads, smart home products, etc) by using a seamless Siri command system within the next three years. Siri can already do a lot, but Apple apparently wants to remove the necessity of starting up the Siri interface in order for it to recognize a command. That means, if Siri is activated for one user's account, it would be always on and listening. As with all unconfirmed Apple initiatives, the project could be scrapped before ever hitting the market.

Valentina Palladino
Valentina is the Associate Reviewer for Ars Technica, covering all gadgets with a focus on mobile devices and wearables. She has a soft spot for Chromebooks. Twitter@valentinalucia